Thomas Lane

Thomas Lane VC

Thomas Lane was born in Cork, Ireland, in May 1836. A career soldier of the old British Army, he first served with the 47th Regiment of Foot during the Crimean War, where he earned the Crimea Medal with clasps for Alma, Inkermann, and Sebastopol, as well as the Turkish Crimea Medal.

By 1860 Lane was serving as a Private in the 67th Regiment of Foot, later the South Hampshire Regiment. During the Second China War, on 21 August 1860, British forces assaulted the North Taku Forts. The attack was dangerous and confused, with ditches, walls, and heavy enemy resistance slowing the advance.

During the assault, Private Thomas Lane and Lieutenant Nathaniel Burslem swam the ditches surrounding the fort and pressed forward before the entrance had been properly opened. They attempted to enlarge an opening in the wall so that the attacking troops could get inside. Both men were severely wounded, but their courage helped force the way into the fort.

For this act of gallantry Lane was awarded the Victoria Cross. His award was published in the London Gazette on 13 August 1861. The citation recognized his distinguished bravery in swimming the ditches of the North Taku Fort and continuing the attempt to open the way through the wall under fire.

Lane’s later life was much darker and more complicated. After leaving regular service, he went to South Africa and served at various times with colonial and mounted units, including service connected with the Anglo-Zulu War. He was entitled to the South Africa Medal 1877–79 with clasp “1879,” although records indicate that this medal was later returned unclaimed.

On 7 April 1881, Thomas Lane’s Victoria Cross was forfeited after he was convicted of desertion on active service and theft of a horse, arms, and accoutrements. He was one of only eight men whose Victoria Crosses were formally forfeited. The forfeiture removed the official honour at the time, but it did not mean that the original act of gallantry at the Taku Forts had not taken place. His VC action remained a real and gazetted act of battlefield courage.

The issue of forfeited Victoria Crosses later became controversial. King George V strongly objected to the idea that a Victoria Cross could be taken away, reportedly stating that even if a VC recipient were to be hanged for murder, he should still wear the Cross on the scaffold. Since that time, no Victoria Cross has been forfeited, and the men whose awards were cancelled have remained listed in official VC records, with the forfeiture noted.

Lane died at Kimberley, South Africa, on 12 April 1889 while serving with the Kimberley Police. His story is therefore not a simple one. He was both a brave soldier who earned the highest award for gallantry in the British Empire, and a troubled man whose later conduct led to the removal of that award. For a historical record, both facts matter: the Victoria Cross was forfeited, but the courage at the North Taku Forts was real.